In a letter written on Microsoft Word and sent by e-mail, Mr. Giuseppe, a 72-year-old pensioner living in Palermo, recounts his participation in Project Grandparents on the Internet at the Post Office.
The project promoted by Poste Italiane was based on the Intergenerational Learning Model developed by FMD. Courses were held at post offices in six pilot cities: Ascoli, Asti, Mantua, Naples, Palermo and Rome.
Here is Mr. Giuseppe’s letter:
GRANDPARENTS ON THE INTERNET COURSE AT THE POST OFFICE
PALERMO, JULY 7 - OCTOBER 15, 2015
I had never used the Internet and thought I never would. Now, that I have learned about it, I find it great. It has allowed me to discover, learn and study anything that might pop into my mind. I have always had many questions and have always had to look for the answers in encyclopaedias and other books. Today, I have discovered that the Internet provides answers to all that my questions. I can also travel through the continents without spending a cent. I love to do this with maps and all the other tools available on the Internet. I can now visit any historical site, at least from up above. And I can even connect with relatives spread around the world.
The world of Facebook has allowed me to catch up with schoolmates that I hadn’t seen in years, while YouTube allows me to relive my youth through the songs I loved. Skype allows me to keep in touch with relatives who live far away and discover much more too.
I even had the opportunity to appreciate my new professors, who are so new they aren’t even eighteen, yet! I was astonished by how well they know all of this new technology. I was never a great lover of youth. I had always encountered slow, tired and somnolent young men and women, but now I have discovered that I am the slow one. The Internet has changed my opinion of them. They are very skilled and I trust that when it will be their turn to manage society, they might improve things. I just worry that dirty politics might one day influence them, too. Now, I find them sincere, loyal, and talented as well as ready to master future technology.
Thanks to them and notwithstanding my age, I have discovered new EMOTIONS.
Giuseppe Chiommino
Pensioner, 72 years old
